Lois Andrews (1924 - 1968)

American Actress. Born in Huntington Park, California, as Lorraine Gourley, she played in films during the 1940s and early 1950s. She is perhaps best known for her first role in 1943 as the comic strip character Dixie Dugan in the Twentieth Century Fox film of the same name. While still in her teens, she was […]

Karl Dane (1886 - 1934)

Actor. He came from a Danish theatrical family and made his stage debut at the age of fourteen. In addition to acting, he also raced cars and flew planes. He was one of the first aviators to serve in the Danish Flying Corps. During World War I, he relocated to Hollywood. Most of the films […]

Laurie Anders (1922 - 1992)

Entertainer. Born Lorayne Day in Casper, Wyoming. A voluptuous blonde starlet, she enjoyed brief fame as a crooning cowgirl on CBS TV’s “The Ken Murray Show” from 1950 to 1953. Her hit theme song, “I Love the Wide Open Spaces” (with the emphasis on “Wide”), became a popular catch phrase of the era. Anders brought […]

Karen Anders (1928 - 1994)

Actress. She appeared in the films “Fright Night Part II” (1989), “The Malibu Bikini Shop” (1985), “The Kid With 200 I.Q.” (1983), “Promises In The Dark” (1979), “Audrey Rose” (1977), “Sheila Levine Is Dead And Living In New York” (1975), “Medical Story” (1975), “Busting” (1974), and “She Lives” (1973). Appeared in television series including “Dream […]

Helga Anders (1948 - 1986)

Actress. She was a leading performer of Austrian and German television for a number of years. Born Helga Scherk, she was raised in Ruhpolding and Bielfield after her parents’ break-up and made her professional stage debut at age eight. To the end of her life she was involved in Munich theatrical projects though she was […]

Luana Anders (1938 - 1996)

Actress. Born Luana Margo Anderson in New York City, she was a bike messenger for MGM, when she started appearing on the television shows “Dragnet”, “M Squad”, “The Rifleman” and “Rawhide” in the 1950s. She made her film debut in “Dementia 13” (1961), followed by “The Pit and the Pendulum” (1961). Among her many credits […]

Adrienne Ames (1903 - 1947)

Actress. Born Adrienne Ruth McClure, she played in films such as “The Death Kiss,” “George White’s Scandals” and “The Road to Reno.” Married for a time to actor Bruce Cabot, she leaves films business in 1941 and becomes a commentator on a New York City radio station, interviewing celebrities and dispensing beauty suggestions.

Ramsay Ames (1919 - 1998)

Actress. Born Phillips Ames, she was a dancer and a model at the Eastman Kodak-sponsored fashion show at the 1939 New York World’s Fair. Invited to a screen test at Columbia Studios California, she made her film debut in “Two Senoritas from Chicago” (1943). She became a very popular B-movie leading lady appearing in films […]

Bobby Parker (1937 - 2013)

Born in Lafayette, Louisiana, but raised in Los Angeles, California, Parker first aspired to a career in entertainment at a young age. By the 1950s, Parker had started working on electric guitar with several blues and R&B bands of the time, with his first stint being with Otis Williams and the Charms. Over the next […]

Jean Parker (1915 - 2005)

Jean Parker In the days of the Hollywood studio system, when stars were under contract and had little say in what roles they played, some actors suffered from being misused by their bosses. MGM, for example, undervalued the lovely and talented Jean Parker, who has died aged 90. Although she made 16 films for the […]

Lois Austin (1901 - 1957)

Actress. She appeared in 58 movies in the 1940s and 1950s, usually playing society ladies, although many of her roles were uncredited. She is remembered particularly for her role as “Mom” in the sexploitation thriller “Mom and Dad” (1944). In the 1951 television series “The Amos ‘n Andy Show”, she played Harriet Harrington and Mrs […]

Dimitra Arliss (1932 - 2012)

Actress. Out of a 30 year career she is remembered as Loretta Salino, the hit-lady of 1973’s comedy classic “The Sting”. Raised in Ohio she had early theatrical ambitions and for many years was a company member at the Goodman Theater of Chicago; after relocating to New York Dimitra first attracted major notice in the […]

Junie Astor (1912 - 1967)

French actress. Born in Marseilles, her career spanned four decades and over 50 films from her 1933 film Etienne directed by Jean Tarride to her final film in 1967, L’Homme de L’Interpol directed by Maruice Boutel. Her performance in the 1937 film “Le Coupable,” was rewarded with the Prix Suzanne Bianchetti, a prize awarded annually […]

Gertrude Astor (1887 - 1977)

Actress. Born in Lakewood, Ohio, November 9, 1877, she began her career playing trombone on riverboats and in vaudeville when she signed a contract with Universal in 1915. She made her screen debut in “Concert” (1921), followed by “Strong Man” (1926) and “The Cat and the Carney” (1927). Her other credits included Laurel and Hardy […]

Jean Arthur (1900 - 1991)

Actress. She appeared in nearly 100 films from the silent era of the 1920s to her final film, the 1953 classic “Shane”, in which she starred with Allan Ladd and Van Heflin. Until her start in talkies, she kept her hair brunette, but shortly after the era of sound came to movies, she began bleaching […]

Bea Arthur (1922 - 2009)

Bea Arthur Actress. A versatile performer, she earned both Tony and Emmy Awards in a stage and television career that spanned 60 years. Born Bernice Frankel, she was raised in New York City, moved with her family to Maryland at 11, and received a degree in medical technology from now-defunct Blackstone College in Virginia. During […]

Mignon Anderson (1892 - 1983)

Actress. Appeared on stage and in motion pictures during the 1910s and 20s (silent era). She is buried next to her husband, actor J. Morris Foster.

Rona Anderson (1926 - 2013)

Actress. A pretty brunette, she is remembered for her long career on the British stage and screen. Raised in the city of her birth, she received her theatrical training at the Glover Turner-Robertson School of Drama, made her 1945 professional bow at Lerwick’s Garrison Theatre in “Peg o’My Heart”, then from 1945 thru 1949 refined […]

Dame Anderson (1898 - 1992)

Actress. Born in Adelaide, Australia, she worked in stage in Australia before coming to United States in 1918. After a few difficult years, she appeared on Broadway and built a solid career as one of the greatest ladies in stage. She obtained acclaim playing “Medea” and “Lady Macbeth”, wining two Emmys for these performances. In […]

Larry Haines (1918 - 2008)

Actor. He was a prolific performer of television, stage and films in a career that spanned more than five decades. He is best known for appearing 35 years in the role of Stu Bergman on the soap opera “Search for Tomorrow”, for which he won two Emmy Awards. In addition, he received Tony Award nominations […]

Barbara Jo Allen (1906 - 1974)

Actress. She is best remembered as ‘Vera Vague’ the spinster character she created and portrayed on radio and in films during the 1940s and 1950s. As ‘Vera Vague’, she popularized the catch phrase “You dear boy!” Born in New York City, New York, her acting skills first appeared in school plays. She traveled to Paris, […]

Gracie Allen (1902 - 1964)

Comedienne, Actress. The wife of George Burns, for more than 30 years she appeared on radio, television, and film, playing a single scatterbrained character, with her husband playing opposite as the straight man. She was born Grace Ethel Cecile Rosalie Allen in San Francisco to George and Margaret Allen joining a family consisting of three […]

Edwin Adams (1834 - 1877)

American Actor. Adams became interested in acting in his late teens, and before he turned twenty debuted on stage at the National Theatre in Boston portraying the character Stephen, the sympathetic character of Sir Thomas in “The Hunchback”. Later that same year he appeared in Hamlet portraying the part of Bernado. In 1854, he left […]

Robert Young (1907 - 1998)

Actor. In a career that lasted over fifty years, Robert Young performed on stage, screen and radio, appearing in some 100 movies before making a successful transition to television. He was born in Chicago coming west when his family relocated to Los Angeles at age seven. Introduced to acting while attending Lincoln High School, he […]

Roland Young (1887 - 1953)

Actor. Young made his stage debut in 1911 with Arthur Bouries in “Find the Woman”.  After playing for some time in the English provinces he appeared in “Improper Peter” in London. So successful was he in this play that his next chance came from New York where he played in “Hindle Wakes” and in shorter […]

Lee Young (1984 - 2013)

Young was born in Columbia, South Carolina, the son of Velma (née Love) and Tommy Scott Young. He was in the second grade when his parents’ marriage ended, and he went to live with his mother. At age ten, he portrayed Martin Luther King in a play called A Night of Stars and Dreams by […]

Mary Eaton (1901 - 1948)

Actress. American theatrical star and motion picture figure. Appeared with the Marx Brothers in their first film ‘The Cocoanuts’ (1929). Her headstone is simply marked ‘Our Mary’. She was married to actor Eddie Laughton.

Sybil Jason (1927 - 2011)

Child Actress. Sometimes known as “Britain’s answer to Shirley Temple”. Born Sybil Jacobson, the daughter of a shoe salesman and the niece of orchestra leader Harry Jacobson, she moved with her family to London at an early age. At five years old, she was performing in London-area clubs, entertaining patrons with her Maurice Chevalier impersonations […]

Florence Lake (1904 - 1980)

Actress. Real name Florence Silverlake. A native of Charleston, South Carolina, she is probably best remembered for her roles in a series of short films playing the wives of actor Edgar Kennedy. The short films ran until Kennedy’s death in 1948. She was also the sister of actor Arthur Lake, best known for his role […]

Alan Hale Jr. (1921 - 1990)

Actor. He is best remembered for his role of “The Skipper” in the classic television comedy series, “Gilligan’s Island” (1964 to 1967). Born Alan Hale Mackahan in Los Angeles, California, he was the son of film actor Rufus Edward Mackahan (1892-1950), who used the stage name of Alan Hale. Young Alan adopted his father’s stage […]